Seattle Venture To Settle Ftc Scam Charge Firm, 3 Individuals To Pay $288,000 For ‘Phony’ Claims Of Jobs, Scholarships

A local firm and three people have agreed to pay about $288,000 to settle Federal Trade Commission charges over advertisements related to jobs.

Progressive Media Inc., based in Seattle, and the individuals will place the money in a refund pool for those who bought the product over the past 10 years.

The FTC described the ventures as “scams” offering “phony Alaskan fishing jobs (and) scholarship claims.”

In the settlements, the defendants do not admit guilt. The principal defendant, Matthew Lucas of Progressive Media, said he did nothing wrong.

“We feel we would have won if we had gone to trial,” he said. “We’re a small company, and we can’t afford to get in a large legal battle with the government.”

The settlement calls for Lucas to liquidate his entire stock portfolio with proceeds estimated at $280,000, FTC attorney Joe Lipinsky said.

Kevin Lustgarten of Progressive Media is to pay $3,000 and Mark Buchan, a contractor who worked as Collegiate Communications Group, is to pay $5,000.

The FTC said Progressive Media ran ads such as this: “GET A CRUISE JOB! Earn up to $2,000+ a month … If you’re looking for work that will allow you to TRAVEL THE WORLD and earn a living at the same time, GIVE US A CALL. Companies are recruiting now! Full-time or seasonal jobs available.”

Callers were asked to buy a $49.95 program. However, the FTC said, they received only a paperback book about where and how to apply for a job.

The FTC said the high-paying jobs on fishing boats and cruise ships were typically not available to college students and that the cruise-ship jobs required degrees.